crosswords.

I have been reading lots of short stories this past week, maybe because I'm supposed to be writing my dissertation and reading short things makes me feel less guilty - I'll just read one and get back to it, I'll think. Of course this is just a way to deceive myself, but I'll be voluntarily deceived if it means I get to enjoy stories such as these.

Speaking of things that make me feel guilty, I regret that up until now I had not given any more attention to Salinger ever since I read The Catcher in the Rye. To be quite honest, I think I have enjoyed these even more.

Short stories are better than novels in the way that they can condense much more oddity in an ending. It's what's left unsaid that quite jumps at you. You feel funny for a moment. But then you come to a realization. And then you feel pleasurably alienated. And there, there is where reflexion gets made.

And Salinger does this masterfully. He knows just where he wants to go and carries it off with precision.

Nine Stories wins partially over The Catcher in the Rye because it allows us to truly perceive the breadth of talent this guy had. His sentences flow so smoothly, his descriptions are so visual, his themes so various and relevant; there is really no end to the ways Salinger can be praised.

My favourites: A Perfect Day for Bananafish (I mean, of course!), The Laughing Man and Pretty Mouth and Green My Eyes. But to be honest, there is something in every one. You should read them asap if you haven't.